Sean Longstaff joined the Newcastle United academy aged 9. He leaves as a seasoned 27-year-old with the appreciation and respect of every true Newcastle supporter.
Longstaff’s departure at this stage makes sense for all parties. Newcastle get up to £15m ‘pure profit’ for an academy graduate, Leeds get an experienced Premier League midfielder, and Longstaff gets a guarantee of first team football as he enters his peak years.
It’s a mark of the man that Longstaff himself reportedly wanted to ensure his boyhood club benefitted financially, rather than seeing out the final year of his contract and leaving on a free transfer in 12 months. The way football clubs account for transfers and wages in a PSR world essentially means the transfer fee and wages saved pay for a year of Anthony Elanga.
Early in his career Longstaff had a successful half-season on loan at Kilmarnock, followed by an equally prosperous season at Blackpool as a young prospect. He then joined Rafa Benitez’s Newcastle squad for 2018/19. He made his debut in a League Cup tie at Nottingham Forest, then came off the bench at Anfield for the first of his 171 Premier League appearances. His first Magpies goal came in an FA Cup 3rd round replay win at Blackburn Rovers.
It was his performances in January and February of 2019 that really made people sit up and take notice. Playing in a defensive midfield role alongside Isaac Hayden, Longstaff gave an outstanding performance against a midfield opposition of Kevin De Bruyne, David Silva and Fernandinho as Newcastle upset Premier League Champions, Manchester City. Pep Guardiola was effusive in his praise after that game saying that his team ‘couldn’t deal’ with Longstaff and his midfield partner. It was just Longstaff’s third league start.
Even better was to come a few games later as Longstaff notched the second goal in a 2-0 win over Burnley at St James’ Park for his first league goal. His joy on that day was palpable and was something that would be repeated in future years.
The next game against West Ham was billed as the battle of the future England midfield stars as Longstaff came up against West Ham’s Declan Rice. Unfortunately, the Londoner came out on top and Longstaff was subbed off with a knee injury which cut his season short, but he had made a great impact in just a few months and was linked with a big money switch to Manchester United.
That move didn’t eventuate and Longstaff’s development stagnated under Steve Bruce, who played him more sporadically and didn’t know how to get the best out of him. Longstaff has intimated that he didn’t benefit from Bruce’s coaching methods and has admitted to experiencing some mental health issues with anxiety around this time which took the enjoyment out of playing football. However, there was a special family moment in October 2019 when Sean and his brother Matty Longstaff started together in a win over Man Utd. Matty scored the only goal in the 1-0 victory.
It took Longstaff a while to get into the team under Eddie Howe, and he actually started more league games in 2021/22 under Bruce and Graham Jones (8) than he did after Howe’s arrival (7), but by the end of the season he was back in the team consistently.
2022/23 was Longstaff’s real breakout season as he flourished under the coaching and man-management skills of Eddie Howe. His game elevated to a new level tactically and he made himself a crucial cog next to Bruno on the right hand side of Howe’s midfield three. The high point was Longstaff’s brace at St James’ Park in the Carabao Cup semi-final against Southampton which fired the Magpies to Wembley for the first time in two decades. His importance was such that the team fell apart for the only time that season away at Aston Villa when he was only fit to appear for 22 minutes of the bench with the game already lost.
If the Southampton goals were the pinnacle of his career up to that point, Longstaff’s goal to make it 3-1 against PSG the following season may have surpassed it. He was extraordinary that famous night against one of Europe’s elites, when his fellow Geordie and great friend Dan Burn was also on the scoresheet. There were seven additional goals in 2023/24 as he continued to perform his role in the team with the trust of Howe while Sandro Tonali kicked his heels in the stands due to his ban.
Tonali rated Longstaff as the most underrated player in the squad, which suggests that the criticism levelled at Longstaff at times didn’t go unnoticed. There’s a fine line between valid, constructive criticism and unfair scapegoating. Sadly, Longstaff suffered the latter from a vocal section of Newcastle followers on social media at least, many of whom now are falling over themselves in a hypocritical rush to express their gratitude to him now he is on his way out.
His technical deficits were highlighted more during 2023/24 than the season prior as Newcastle grappled with a brutal fixture list and a terrible injury crisis, but Longstaff (along with Almiron and, at times, Burn) became the whipping boy and the easy target. In another mark of his character, he played the last months of that season with a significant foot injury, putting his body on the line for his club. He never hid. That effort should not be forgotten.
The vitriol against Longstaff ramped up a level when Tonali returned, many either unable or unwilling to look at the broad context for why Longstaff was still starting games ahead of the Italian (firstly that results were better with Longstaff in the team during that initial early season, and secondly that Howe was bedding Tonali back in and working out the midfield balance with him). There was apoplectic rage when Longstaff started against Arsenal in November. He put in a magnificent tactical performance in the win. He had already scored the winning penalty in the Carabao shootout against Forest which would prove to be significant later in the season.
Eventually Howe did solve the Bruno / Tonali conundrum and Longstaff dropped out of the team for most of the rest of last season. Without the match sharpness he looked rusty and lacking in some confidence when he came off the bench.
Longstaff was never going to be the strongest, quickest or most technically gifted player. But he absolutely was one of the hardest working, most professional, fittest and the most intelligent. He maximised his ability, took the coaching of the elite managers he worked under on board, overcame some personal struggles and developed into a respected, influential leader at his hometown club. This display of character and resilience is what many will remember Longstaff for, and it is these traits which will make him an asset to his new club.
Every one of the 214 times he pulled that black and white shirt on he was living the dream of fans like us. Each of the 16 goals he scored for Newcastle meant the world to him and the delight was written all over his face. He was and is a normal lad from North Shields. No superstar ego. No airs or graces. Just Sean from Shields.
Sean Longstaff leaves Newcastle as a trophy winner, a player who represented the club and his city with pride, and as a key part of the early rebirth of Newcastle United.
That is a legacy to be proud of.
And above all, he was a lovely human being. Both Matty and Sean were brought up right by their parents and in all my dealings with them that shone through.
Big Davy(Quote)